Public

Part of speech: adjective, noun

Pronunciation: /ˈpʌblɪk/

Definitions

1. Open to or shared by all members of a community or society, rather than being private or restricted
2. Available for use, viewing, or participation by anyone without restriction ; connected to or involving all members of a society or community ; the people collectively considered as potential viewers or participants in events or communication
3. Freely accessible and not confined to any individual or group ; pertaining to the collective welfare or interests of society ; a group of individuals who form the audience or society at large

Etymology: Latin "pūblicus" was once "poplicus," a word that shared its root with "populus," meaning "the people." Somewhere along the way it was altered, probably under the influence of "pūbēs," a word for adult men or the male population, so the sense of "public" grew out of the idea of the people as a community, and especially the people as a body of citizens. English took the word through Anglo-Norman and Middle French, arriving in Late Middle English as "publik" and "publike." It did not arrive empty-handed: it displaced the native Old English words "ceorlfolc" and "folclic," which had described the same idea of what belongs to the common people. Those native words disappeared, and the Latin-derived term took over their job. The word's meaning also travelled outward from the crowd itself. The noun now names the audience or society at large, and the adjective describes things open to everyone, from parks to elections. The verb developed from the adjective, so to publish something is, at root, to make it public.

Synonyms: community, society, general, open, collective

Antonyms: private, exclusive, personal, secret, hidden